Kolkata: A 46-year-old woman from Birbhum died and two elderly men sustained injuries on Monday after a kadam tree branch came crashing down on them inside the SSKM Hospital compound.The fatal incident occurred outside the urology outpatient department amid strong winds and intermittent rain triggered by a low-pressure system over south Bengal on Monday.Hospital sources identified the deceased as Rahida Bibi, a resident of Nalhati in Birbhum. She had travelled to Kolkata to attend to a hospitalised relative, Aklima Bibi, who is undergoing treatment in the urology department.According to police and witness accounts, Rahida was resting on a concrete bench outside the urology unit alongside several other patient attendants when a massive tree branch snapped and crashed down onto the seating area.Emergency medical staff rushed Rahida to the hospital’s Trauma Care Centre, where attending doctors declared her dead on arrival.Two other individuals seated nearby were also struck and suffered significant injuries. Police identified them as Zillar Rahman (68) and Shish Mohammad Sheikh (76).Sheikh, who also hails from Birbhum and suffers from a chronic kidney ailment, had been waiting near the department since 3 am to secure a surgery date. He was lying on the concrete bench when the falling branch struck his leg, causing a suspected fracture. Both injured men were admitted to the Trauma Care unit for emergency treatment.The collapse occurred as severe weather conditions swept across Kolkata and neighbouring districts, bringing persistent rainfall and strong winds since Sunday. In a separate incident on the same day, another individual suffered injuries when a tree collapsed near the hospital’s nephrology department.Officials at IPGMER-SSKM said the tree did not show any sign that the soil beneath was getting loosened. All looked fine with the tall kadam tree till it came crashing down on Monday morning. Post the incident, the hospital’s PWD team started a survey to identify trees whose roots may give up.“The tree appeared normal and healthy as it stood upright all these days even during the recent heavy downpour. So it was not possible for us to identify it as risky. But since an incident has happened, PWD has started to detect trees that might fall due to loose soil,” said an official at SSKM.Kolkata Police officers confirmed that no formal complaint has been filed so far regarding the incident, though a GD entry has recorded the fatal accident. SSKM administration is monitoring the condition of the injured victims.
